On April 17, 1895, China and Japan signed the Treaty of Shimonoseki.
The Sino-Japanese War, which broke out on July 25, 1894, ended in the complete defeat of the Qing Dynasty.
The impact of the First Sino-Japanese War in history was by no means limited to the military, it had a huge impact on China at that time politically, economically and ideologically, and deeply moved China at that time.
Later generations have focused on the grand narrative of the Sino-Japanese War, but have ignored some people and events.
Today, let's take a look at the 2,358 Qing soldiers who were captured by the Japanese army in the First Sino-Japanese War, and what their lives were like after being captured.
From the Battle of Toshima on July 25, 1894, to the signing of the Treaty of Shimonoseki on April 17, 1895, in the war of nearly a yearThe Qing army sharedPerson**,People were captured;Shared by the Japanese armyPerson**,People were captured;
The first Qing soldiers to be captured were captured in the Battle of Toshima.
At that time, the Qing army's "Caojiang" gunboat surrendered under the siege and forced of the Japanese army, and 72 people on board were captured from the captain Wang Yongfa, and they also became the first Qing soldiers to become prisoners in this war.
After Wang Yongfa and others were captured, they were escorted back to China by the Japanese army and imprisoned in the Sasebo Naval Prison.
The Japanese often dragged them out to parade through the streets and accept the taunts and humiliations of the Japanese in the streets;When you return to prison, you will be abused by the jailers.
In the battle of Pyongyang, the Qing army suffered a heavy defeat, and was ambushed by the Japanese army during the retreat, resulting in heavy losses. 683 people were captured, and the fate of these 683 people was also different.
Among them, 25 died soon due to injuries and illness, and 47 planned to escape, only to be found and killed by the Japanese army;Three others died in temporary custody, and the cause of death is not known.
The remaining 608 people were transported to Japan, as recorded in the diary of a Japanese officer
The prisoners of war were first captured with their hands tied and their hair tied together with ropes;Half of the food is mud and sand, which is hard to swallow, and when you are thirsty, you are given a little water that is dirty. On the ship being sent to Japan, so many people were huddled together, urinating and urinating in the house, and the stench was unbearable.
Along the way, people died one after another, and when they arrived in Japan, those who survived were imprisoned in prisoner of war camps.
The third group of 1,110 Qing soldiers who were captured in the battles of Liaodong and Weihai were also transported to Japan.
So far, the total number of Qing soldiers imprisoned in Japan has reachedPerson**,
These soldiers were scattered throughout Japan, some in prisons, some in barracks, and some directly in open spaces.
Most of these prisoners of war were mistreated, poorly fed, sick and untreated, and spent their days in despair, some hoping for an early death, while others struggled to return home with a conviction of faith.
A small number of people were regarded as "models" by the Japanese propaganda, and they were given good examples, they were more comfortable with food, clothing, and housing, and they were treated by doctors when they were sick, and to some extent they were said to be a little better than the Japanese peasants.
Because of this, some of these people also have the idea of not wanting to return to China, and they are somewhat unhappy.
But the Japanese are so good to them for another purpose. The Japanese are trying to promote their "benevolence" to the West, reflecting their eagerness to become a so-called civilized country.
At that time, the commander of the Japanese Sasebo town guard office, Shibayama Yahachi, wrote in a letter to the Minister of the Navy, Saigo Tomichi:
Qing prisoners of warThere is no difference from a prisoner. If insiders and outsiders get a glimpse of the inside story, it may produce all kinds of slander and false comments
In addition to the more than 1,000 prisoners of war held in Japan, 568 prisoners of war were not taken to Japan and were directly interned in China.
This group of prisoners of war was the most fortunate, and they were dismissed by the Japanese army after the end of the war and did not live in a foreign country.
After the signing of the Treaty of Shimonoseki, the two sides began to exchange prisoners of war.
On August 18, 1895, 976 of the 1,790 Qing prisoners of war held in Japan were sent to Tianjin.
The soldiers of the Qing army who returned to China were directly dismissed on the spot, and there was no severance pay;Some of the officers were also dismissed, and some were imprisoned for accountability.
Most of the remaining prisoners of war died slowly under the abuse of the Japanese army, and did not return to their hometowns until they died.
After their deaths, the Japanese gave them a unified burial, and the tombstones were all facing the direction of the motherland, but the word prisoner was still written on it.
Their names have gradually been submerged in the river of time.
In 2003, a Chinese student in Japan stumbled upon these tombstones, which brought the past back to light.
Some of the text on the tombstones has been blurred, but their names can be faintly seen:
Liu Hanzhong, Lu Wenfeng, Yang Yongkuan, Liu Qide, Li Jinfu.
Wang Dianqing, Zhang Wensheng, Xu Wande, Zheng Gui.
A hundred years of history have passed, and these soldiers are still sleeping in the barren mountains of a foreign land.
I sincerely hope that they will be able to return to their motherland as soon as possible.